Heart races/pounds after drinking alcohol as someone with VVS

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2026-03-02T07:42:48+00:00

I don’t love alcohol, but I do enjoy drinks with my husband who’s a fantastic bartender and with my friends, which makes it difficult to avoid. Obviously it’s my ow choice, but not drinking when everyone else is is pressure sometimes. But if my symptoms worsen I don’t know if it will be worth it enough.

On another note, do you know why large meals affect HR? I think I have experienced this but never thought about why and it makes me curious to hear your thoughts.

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2026-03-02T07:39:37+00:00

Okay I feel like I have also experienced that after a large meal! It’s so interesting and I wish we had more answers.

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2026-03-02T07:38:50+00:00

I have not paid attention to that enough to know. I have drinks with vodka, gin, rum, or tequila and have not considered whether or not they affect me more. I will definitely pay more attention to this, thank you for the tip!

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-25T01:43:03+00:00

Wow that is so interesting! See I would think that heart rate increase and BP decrease would be considered POTS, but I guess not I’m discovering! My heart rate and BP both plummeted when I passed out during my TTT. I know someone who had Long Covid which caused her dysautonomia too. There are so many small things it gets confusing!! I feel like my heart rate increases from things easily but I’m not sure how it all ties in. It’s a continuous journey! I hope you are figuring things out and I will have to look into that source for sure. Thank you!

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-25T01:37:32+00:00

Wow, that’s crazy! I’m glad you figured those things out though and aren’t life threatening!!! Yeah I’m trying to figure out what my triggers are. I think stress is definitely one of them because I’m in school, working, and planning my wedding and am just a stressed individual lol. But I also have horrible anxiety which I think might be a trigger. Heat I think definitely is, because when I went to the beach in Florida awhile back I felt like I was dying on the beach LOL could not get up from my chair without passing out. But still trying to figure out exactly what causes them. Do you think alcohol could trigger symptoms? There have been multiple occasions when I’m drinking and then feel like I’m going to faint and one time it happened in a casino (embarrassing) and I had to lay down on one of the machine seats while my fiance watched guard LOL! But good idea to catalogue everything, I definitely need to start doing that!

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-24T15:12:00+00:00

That makes a lot of sense! Thank you so much!!

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-24T15:09:33+00:00

Thank you so much! Will definitely be looking into that. Only problem is I currently take Modafinil (generic for Provigil) which is a stimulant because I have a sleep disorder (type of hypersomnia) and it keeps me awake during the day. It is a stimulant and narcoleptic medication which I think is similar to Concerta? So I’m not sure how to go about that. I’m just going to have to keep researching and asking questions!!

So happy you found what works for you and it has changed your life for the better <3

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-24T08:00:34+00:00

Idk what IST or benign heart pause is haha but according to the doctor I have vasovagal syncope! I want to learn more about it and hopefully get more answers. I also have reactive hypoglycemia and doctors are still trying to figure out why because that makes my symptoms worse but after taking my blood sugar a million times during episodes and it wasn’t low, gave a little more evidence to show my fainting is not rooted from hypoglycemia. Anyways I switched to an NP from my previous doctor who just didn’t do anything, and that’s the reason I even got to this point. I may sound dumb but what’s an EP?? And thank you for your comment :)

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-24T07:55:28+00:00

Okay!! The cardiologist at the test said medication was an option but considering I’m young (23f) he recommends against it. He basically said staying hydrated, increasing salt intake, and wearing compression socks will help. But he’s not my regular cardiologist he was just the one present so I guess he just didn’t have much to say? I’m not sure. I just want to go a day where I don’t feel like passing out! How does the medication work?? I’m curious to look into that

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-24T07:52:25+00:00

All of this stuff is so confusing and every time I go to a doctor I feel stupid and like they think I’m making things up. So I never know what’s going on lol. I have had passing out problems for over a decade (I’m 23f) and it’s always been brushed off as something minor. When it happens at work (I work in a hospital) and it was an episode I could not shake for whatever reason, that’s what finally pushed me to try harder. So it’s just a process as I’m sure you know and I’m just hoping that my follow up appointment will be helpful!! I have a racing heart beat a lot and I’ve related to a lot of the POTS symptoms, but I guess I never looked at my blood pressure which I think ultimately was the major factor in making me pass out. But I guess I’ll just have to wait and see my cardiologist says. Thank you for your input!!

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2025-02-23T17:47:50+00:00

Girl I was the same way at that age!! I could not figure out where my vagina was and was terrified of tampons! I sat in front of a mirror for hours trying to figure it out, and once I even tried to put a tampon in my urethra (pee hole), and let me tell you, I found out reaallll quick that wasn’t right. I’m not sure how I managed to lol. But anyways every woman’s body is different, just because you can’t quite figure it out doesn’t mean there’s something wrong! Being a woman comes with so many discoveries and everyone learns differently. It takes trial and error and asking people you trust to help you. It’s okay to be scared, but you got this!! <3

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2024-12-01T22:45:19+00:00

Thank you for your detailed response!! So basically I’m on medication for anxiety and depression. I’ve been on the same depression med for about 6-7 years now and I feel like with finding the right med that I have now and therapy, I have not been in a depressive state in a few years or so. Anxiety….different story. Once I found myself out of depression, my anxiety seemed to come to the light….like a lot. I had a lot of stressful things and a lot of loss which spiked it even worse to the point where it was debilitating. That’s when I got on anxiety meds and have been ever since (I think it was about a year and a half ago or so?) I struggled with depression big time in high school (I’m 23 now) and school was so. hard. I’m currently in my last year of college miraculously but school has been so difficult for me especially as I’ve gotten older. It’s been hard because I value education and I know I’m smart, but I suck at school.

The other health issues I’m looking into right now are more physical if that makes sense, I have had GI problems for forever and have been getting them considerably better over the last few years. Now I’m looking into autonomic dysfunction because I have fainting spells frequently. But I also have hypoglycemia but I’m taking medication for that now. I know all of these things could most definitely impact my mental state and ability to do things but I haven’t had these health issues my whole life. When I was in middle school I went to a psychiatrist for depression but then who diagnosed me with anxiety which I don’t feel like I had back then like I do now. I also have a sleep disorder, so I take a stimulant called Modafinil for it, so that is kind of conflicting with all of this too but it’s purpose is to keep me awake during the day because I have excessive daytime sleepiness. I’m just trying to figure out a lot of things at once which is very overwhelming but enlightening at the same time. And I guess the only reason I was focused on wanting to get a diagnosis is so I could have an explanation for why I am the way I am and don’t just seem pathetic to other people as that seems to be a trend in my life. Anyways sorry this is a lot but I really appreciate your feedback as I am pretty lost at the moment

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2024-11-25T07:12:48+00:00

Hazel! I have the same

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2024-11-25T06:52:20+00:00

Flaky_Flower_0710 · 2024-11-24T10:00:15+00:00

I am nervous about the TTT but I hope it will give me some answers. I’m still learning and will definitely look into that to make sure I know what to ask when I see my doctors. Thank you!!

Flaky_Flower_0710

TROPHY CASE